Goals for 6 Year-Olds

One of her goals for her children was to be able to write a clear, informative letter by the time they were teenagers.
“Goals?” I thought as my friend continued to share ideas with me.
As usual when faced with new information, I got out my pen and paper. Before the week was over I had my first list of parenting goals for my kiddoes.
Having measurable goals for my parenting, made it a lot easier for me to focus on what was really important and let the rest go.
Looking back, here’s the list of things I still think are worthy goals for parents of young children to focus on.
-To be able to play with other children without hurting or scaring anyone. Okay, I added the last part when we realized that raising a boy was going to be a different kind of challenge than raising girls.
-To use their imagination to empathize. At six, they are a little young still, but it is not too soon to begin to emphasize listening with empathy; hearing, respecting, and trying to undersdtand another person’s perspective. Kids always have imagination to spare; they’ll be more successful as adults if they learn this very important use of their imagination early in life.
-To straighten their room and make up their bed without supervision. Now I’ve lost ya, if you have small children, right? And if, like me, you still have a Junior High kid at home, the task seems endless. But, this is not about perfection as much as the attitude that “Trying counts.”
-To have a grateful heart about provision. By six, a child can start to view the blessings of food, clothing, home, and education as privileges, rather than entitlements.
-To be thankful for teachers. I view my kids’ education as my responsibility, so I am always grateful for help. This translates well into my kids’ hearts, especially when anyone other than mom helps them with math.
-To be a part of the family team. I really hate making them do chores; it is so much easier to do it myself. But nothing says “You are a part of this team” like depending on them to do their task to help everyone else.
-To be trustworthy with younger siblings or cousins. By six, they ought to know that it is necessary to be careful with little ones. If they are slow about developing in this important area, by six, it is time to double check with your pediatrician about other, more complicated, developmental issues.
Some of these goals seem hopelessly unrealistic, I know. On the other hand, when we keep at it, we experience success along the way.
In the case of goals, “Trying counts” turns out to be a good motto for parents as well as kids.
Dianne McGirr, this column is dedicated to you, a real friend to me.
Cathy Primer Krafve, aka Checklist Charlie, lives and writes with a Texas twang. Comments are invited at http:checklistcharlie.blogspot.com or cathykrafve@gmail.com.